


Garlic Bread

by fakebodies



Category: Goal! (Movies)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Mild emotional hurt/comfort, WOW i really havent posted anything in a while, like the TINIEST hint of emotional hurt/comfort, this is old
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-23
Updated: 2019-10-23
Packaged: 2020-12-28 19:24:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 992
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21141944
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fakebodies/pseuds/fakebodies
Summary: Gavin burns a Valentine's Day dinner





	Garlic Bread

Gavin used to get fidgety about Valentine’s Day— ‘used to’ being the key. Early on, when they finally made their relationship official, Gavin would go all out. As if he had to prove to Santiago he was a good boyfriend, worth loving, worth keeping around. It got better, of course; Santiago proved time and time again that yes, Gavin was all of those things. A wonderful boyfriend who Santi was lucky to have in his life, and who he’d never, ever abandon. This thing, all this openness between them… it was hard for Gavin. When he’d had a girlfriend, he protected himself by sleeping around— with Santi, he’d protected himself by saying they were just friends. With that gone, his fear that Santiago would treat him like he’s disposable bubbled to the surface. They’d worked their way past that, and Valentine’s Day became just another holiday. Gavin didn’t wear concealer anymore. The tension eased out, and Santi kisses the smile lines around Gav’s eyes as much as he kisses his mouth.

Gavin could only have so many twenty-ninth birthdays, though, and Santiago knew retirement was a real consideration. He didn’t say anything, since Gavin never brought it up, but he knows this is another big fear— obsoletion. Uselessness. A lack of purpose. There were so many questions neither of them could answer, and Gavin had bounced between clubs constantly in England; he was never the most wanted player. Always an add-on, never the star. Not on the field, maybe, but he was certainly the center of Santi’s universe. Santiago’s already thinking about what they’ll do, which is probably nothing, quite honestly. He makes more than enough for both enough to live off of, and he’s teased Gavin plenty about being a house husband. Not that they’re… they haven’t talked about that kind of commitment, but Santi would be an idiot if he ever let himself drift apart from Gavin like he did with Roz.

With that new can of worms, though, Santiago had been paying extra attention on the days leading up to Valentine’s. Things seemed normal enough; Gav was tense, but he’d been tense a lot lately. Santi didn’t think anything of it until he came home from training to a kitchen that smelled like burnt garlic and the remnants of a candlelit dinner. Gavin, he finds sitting on the bathroom floor eating two-day-old Chinese takeout in a dress shirt and his underwear. Santiago sits down next to him, reaching into the carton and taking a piece of sesame chicken. The sauce is tacky and the meat has rapidly cooled, but he licks his fingers clean and smiles softly at his boyfriend.

“What burned?” he asks as Gavin scoots closer to him, their arms brushing.

“Garlic bread.”

“Ah.” Santi nods, his gaze warm with mirth as he drapes his arm around Gavin’s shoulders, inviting him closer. The invitation is accepted, and Santi buries his nose in Gavin’s curls.  
“Why didn’t you call me? I would’ve stopped and gotten us dinner. You didn’t have to eat old takeout.”

“Yeah, I did. I ruined Valentine’s Day…” Gavin’s voice is full of frustration, and Santiago tightens his arm around his boyfriend’s shoulders.

“Look at me, Gavino. You didn’t ruin anything.” he tips Gavin’s chin up.  
“You’re here, you’re safe— that’s all that matters. I can’t begin to tell you how much I love you, how happy it makes me when I come home and see how hard you tried to do something special for tonight. Even right now… looking at your beautiful face, all I can think about is how lucky I am.”

Gavin stares at him for a moment before looking away, cheeks flushed red with embarrassment.  
“Fuck, mate…”

“Too sappy?” Santiago grins, and that earns a chuckle from Gavin.

“No, not that, just… now my speech sounds stupid.”

“Speech?” Santi can only watch, dumbfounded, as Gavin fishes a small black box out of the pocket of his discarded pants. Gav smiles weakly, looking down at the velvet-covered box as he speaks.

“You and I both know I don’t have much time left on the team. That’s just a fact, and I still haven’t come to terms with it… I’m not really cut out for anything except playing, you know? But this… us? I’m good at us. I want to keep being good at us, Santi.” he lifts the lid on the box, revealing an engagement ring. Simple, classy… thoughtful. Santiago stares at Gavin, open-mouthed. “So, I guess what I’m asking is-“

“-Yes.” Santiago cuts in. Gavin laughs, resting his cheek on Santi’s shoulder as he slips the ring onto his finger.

“You didn’t let me finish. Will you marry me?”

“Of course, Gavino. Mi marido guapo, I already said yes a moment ago. The ring’s on my finger.”

“It’s the principle.” Gavin smiles, cupping Santi’s cheek. He leans in, pressing a kiss to the corner of Santiago’s mouth.  
“Mi cielo.”

“Have I told you how much I love you recently? Because I love you very much.” Santiago beams, kissing Gavin again.

“I could always use a reminder.” Gavin grins back, cheeks pink and hair mussed. Santi peppers him with kisses until Gav laughs and pushes him away, and they stumble arm-in-arm into the hallway to order pizza and garlic bread for dinner. They eat it in bed, drinking the wine Gavin had picked out straight from the bottle, hardly able to get through their dinner between all the kisses they steal. The pizza box doesn’t even make it out to the kitchen garbage in their haste to return to each other’s arms, both of them falling into fits of laughter as they curl together in the warmth of their bed.

In the morning, Santiago will wake to Gavin snoring in his face with the worst morning breath he’s ever smelled, and he’ll know without a shadow of a doubt that saying yes was the best thing he’s ever done in his life.


End file.
